Mass Burial Site in East Kingston Claim
The cartoon takes place in eastern Kingston, Jamaica on a sand mine or what is being claimed to be a mass burial site for gangs. An ex-gangster has reported that gang members from Kingston to Rockfort along with the efforts of some police officers have killed and buried at least 100 bodies on this sand mine deep down with heavy machinery (Helps, 2014). The cartoon presents a police officer digging with a shovel while a member of the press is nearby gathering information. To the side, there is a vulture present to represent death in the picture and a newspaper at the bottom with the headline presenting the mass burial site claims. The police reported no bodies to be found but what they failed to present is that they only searched for one day with tools such as shovels, and machetes even though the claim stated they were buried deep down by large machines (Editor, 2014). Irony is used to help get the point across even more and to demonstrate corruption within law enforcement. The irony is the cop digging however, the officer may be part of the crew who buried the bodies initially. The issue portrayed by the cartoon is both social and political as the police department can no longer be trusted due to corrupted officers. This means society is now at risk with a dirty police force which may no longer protect the innocent.The message that is sent by this cartoon is negative as it displays what could be a corrupt police officer digging up burial site he may have used to help out gangs that are bribing the forces. Also the police have been reported telling media to stop spreading stories that are not accurate because this news has created a social panic (Gleaner, 2014). Depending on the reader this could be seen as another way to cover up the police officers who may be affiliated with the gangs. They are trying to stop the public from believing the story and trying to manipulate the media into not further reporting about the possible mass burial sites.
In my opinion, after analyzing the cartoon thoroughly I think the cartoon is effective and gets the message across well. It demonstrates that the cops are being corruptive, which to my knowledge very well may be the truth, and also manipulating the media into believing that no mass burial sites exist. The vulture adds to the cartoon as it is a well known symbol of death which reveals to the reader that death is within the cartoon. To be more effective, they could have added a bone or corpse sticking out of the pile to ensure the viewer comprehends that the author believes these burial sites exist. Overall, i agree with the cartoonist’s point of view because if the ex-gang member stated that the cops were associated with the gangs and involved in the mass burial sites than they could be just as easily covering up their scandal by falsely reporting to the media that nothing was found. The dirty cops searched for one day without the use of heavy machines and to me that reads guilty all over it. A possible title for the cartoon could have been “Cops get Dirty” which demonstrates my point of view of the situation but leaves it up to the reader to interpret the cartoon.
Works cited
The Gleaner. (2014, Feb. 15). No Mass Burial Site In East Kingston - Police. Retrieved from http://jamaica-gleaner.com/latest/article.php? id=51149
Helps, H. (2014, Jan. 26). Mass Burial Site Claim. Retrieved from http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Mass-Burial-Site-Claim_15872832
Editor, (2014, Feb. 17). Jamaican Police deny mass burial site claim, but…. Retrieved from http://ttnewsflash.com/?p=49625
The cartoon takes place in eastern Kingston, Jamaica on a sand mine or what is being claimed to be a mass burial site for gangs. An ex-gangster has reported that gang members from Kingston to Rockfort along with the efforts of some police officers have killed and buried at least 100 bodies on this sand mine deep down with heavy machinery (Helps, 2014). The cartoon presents a police officer digging with a shovel while a member of the press is nearby gathering information. To the side, there is a vulture present to represent death in the picture and a newspaper at the bottom with the headline presenting the mass burial site claims. The police reported no bodies to be found but what they failed to present is that they only searched for one day with tools such as shovels, and machetes even though the claim stated they were buried deep down by large machines (Editor, 2014). Irony is used to help get the point across even more and to demonstrate corruption within law enforcement. The irony is the cop digging however, the officer may be part of the crew who buried the bodies initially. The issue portrayed by the cartoon is both social and political as the police department can no longer be trusted due to corrupted officers. This means society is now at risk with a dirty police force which may no longer protect the innocent.The message that is sent by this cartoon is negative as it displays what could be a corrupt police officer digging up burial site he may have used to help out gangs that are bribing the forces. Also the police have been reported telling media to stop spreading stories that are not accurate because this news has created a social panic (Gleaner, 2014). Depending on the reader this could be seen as another way to cover up the police officers who may be affiliated with the gangs. They are trying to stop the public from believing the story and trying to manipulate the media into not further reporting about the possible mass burial sites.
In my opinion, after analyzing the cartoon thoroughly I think the cartoon is effective and gets the message across well. It demonstrates that the cops are being corruptive, which to my knowledge very well may be the truth, and also manipulating the media into believing that no mass burial sites exist. The vulture adds to the cartoon as it is a well known symbol of death which reveals to the reader that death is within the cartoon. To be more effective, they could have added a bone or corpse sticking out of the pile to ensure the viewer comprehends that the author believes these burial sites exist. Overall, i agree with the cartoonist’s point of view because if the ex-gang member stated that the cops were associated with the gangs and involved in the mass burial sites than they could be just as easily covering up their scandal by falsely reporting to the media that nothing was found. The dirty cops searched for one day without the use of heavy machines and to me that reads guilty all over it. A possible title for the cartoon could have been “Cops get Dirty” which demonstrates my point of view of the situation but leaves it up to the reader to interpret the cartoon.
Works cited
The Gleaner. (2014, Feb. 15). No Mass Burial Site In East Kingston - Police. Retrieved from http://jamaica-gleaner.com/latest/article.php? id=51149
Helps, H. (2014, Jan. 26). Mass Burial Site Claim. Retrieved from http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Mass-Burial-Site-Claim_15872832
Editor, (2014, Feb. 17). Jamaican Police deny mass burial site claim, but…. Retrieved from http://ttnewsflash.com/?p=49625